golliwog doll

Forgive my ignorance here but how do you differentiate between a golliwog and a black doll? Is it in the caricature or the label on it ?? Black dolls are very normal to be seen around and about and if I remember correctly when a friend of mine became a child minder it was an essentail to have in her house, I understand the current feelings with regards the Golliwog collections and I would doubt if they were made any more so what makes this doll one and not the other?

the swastika was around way before the Nazi took it over....but the fact is they did and they shouldn't be selling them in our toy shops with guns etc for kids to play with ....in my opinion....the golliwogs are a caricature and the name is offensive.........so why on earth would you want to buy one..........

Basically there is nothing wrong about golliwog dolls. The problem is the "wog" element was adopted by racists and even unwittingly by non racists. Enter stage left a new era called "political correctness" and the poor dolly was consigned to the bin. What the dogooders' missed was that they had let the racists win! Probably most folk using the word "wog" nowadays have never heard of or seen a golliwog doll.

So what do we all think of that enduring perennial seaside family favourite "Punch and Judy"?

children in schools in this country were called golliwog .not just wog,..it was meant as an insult and it worked.........can't see how stopping the word being used made it political correctness gone wrong..........if it was used to offend a big group of people.,and it succeeded.then allowing everyone to continue to use it would surely be letting the racists win.

I'm not suggesting people go to prison for having a golliwog but I don't think they are appropriate to have as a kids toy. Maybe as an antique in a museum they have a place but not in the bedrooms of imprssionable young minds. There is no reason why a doll shouldn't be black but the Uncle Tom image is insulting and I wouldn't blame a black person if they found it offensive.

I agree with most of what SR says (probably a first). I was just trying to put into context the view of the time when golliwogs were seem as harmless toys. I actually have one given to me as a Christmas present by my gran when I was eight. I would never get rid of it, but I don't display it.

but no I wouldn't give a golliwog as a gift to any child, as rightly or wrongly, I do understand some people do see them as offensive. Likewise I wouldn't give a friend's child a Barbie on the same grounds.

my teacher used to call me a 'gonk' in school .... thank god I wasn't of Fijian or Hawaiian descent or I could have been traumatised for life .... how these things are still available I'll never know ... despicable racism at its very worst ...

Edited to add my deepest apologies for any offence that may have been caused by posting this picture.

Interesting debate. I was in Whitby not so long ago and was surprised to see a number of gift shops selling "traditional gollys". Note they dropped the "wog" as if that made it okay.

I try and imagine a black kid playing with a sterotyped image of a white person and how I might feel about that, but I suppose the fact that I've never been part of a persecuted minority the comparison isn't valid.

I find them uncomfortable and wouldn't want a child to have one, even though I did as a child. I also had a black doll which was very unusual then and it was my favourite doll for ages although I was too young to be aware of racial issues.

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